A new bill in New York would crack down on the sale of illegal e-motos, and it follows a rise in crashes across the state, including one in which two people died after an e-moto hit a bicycle head on.

The legislation defines an e-moto as a vehicle capable of exceeding 20 mph that isn’t covered by the Vehicle Traffic Law’s definitions of e-bikes or e-scooters, and that isn’t required to be registered with the DMV. It would also create a definition for an “electric off-highway motorcycle” and require that those be sold through licensed ATV dealers. On top of that, retailers would have to provide a disclaimer telling buyers that these machines aren’t legal on New York roads.

Assemblymember Diana Moreno, who is behind the bill, pointed out that these devices can top 50 mph and said the recent deaths confirm they don’t belong on New York streets. She also noted that many New Yorkers depend on e-bikes and other micromobility devices to get around or to earn a living, and that those riders deserve to be safe.

Our Take:

We’re glad to see a clear separation drawn between these machines and e-bikes. That distinction is the piece most legislation gets wrong, and when it’s missing, Class 1, 2, and 3 riders end up carrying the consequences of something they had nothing to do with.

Putting the burden on the point of sale is a smart angle too. Plenty of people buying these things genuinely don’t know what they’re getting, and a required disclaimer at the register does more good than a law most riders will never read.

Gazelle is adding three new Class 1 bikes to its Ultimate family: the Ultimate T10, the Ultimate C5, and the Ultimate C380. They’re built on the same platform and geometry as the Class 3 Ultimate Speed models the brand introduced earlier this year, but they’re aimed at a different kind of ride.

Gazelle described it this way: the Ultimate Speed models are for riders chasing speed and commuting performance, while the new Class 1 models are for everything else. More leisure and recreation focused, still sporty and dynamic, but tuned for riders who want a natural pedal assist feel. The company also pointed out that these are some of its bestselling models, now at a better price, and that the full lineup means there’s an Ultimate for however someone wants to ride.

The redesigned platform brings a few upgrades across the board. All models get wider tires, a suspension seatpost, and an air fork to take the edge off rough pavement. There’s full Bosch smart system integration, and riders get either a Kiox or a Purion display depending on the model. Gazelle describes the fit as an active but comfortable riding position.

Our Take:

These look like solid additions, and we’d love to get our hands on them. Gazelle taking its best-selling platform and offering it in a Class 1 flavor at a lower price is a sensible move, especially for riders who never wanted 28 mph in the first place.

There are a lot of people out there who just want a good bike that feels like a bike. An air fork, wider tires, and a Bosch system tuned for a natural pedal feel is a pretty appealing combination for that rider.

Honda brought an e-MTB concept called the RN0 to Sea Otter Europe, developed in partnership with German bike company Rotwild.

The spec sheet is serious. It’s built around a full carbon frame with a Shimano EP8 mid-drive, and it’s kitted out with a Shimano XTR groupset that includes a 12-speed drivetrain, a wired-in Di2 derailleur, and 4-piston hydraulic disc brakes. It runs a mullet setup with a 29″ front wheel and a 27.5″ rear, plus Fox suspension including a Fox 36 fork.

Honda said the bike uses a lightweight carbon monocoque frame inspired by its motorcycle engineering, designed to balance rigidity and flexibility for precise handling, confident cornering, and good rider feedback. The company also said the suspension layout is built to climb efficiently while staying composed on demanding terrain. Honda described its approach as a “Man Maximum, Machine Minimum” philosophy, which seems to point toward a lower-powered unit meant to enhance rider effort rather than overpower it.

There’s one more wrinkle. BikeRumor noticed that Honda’s teaser video for the bike showed a motor that doesn’t match the standard Shimano production unit on the display model.

Our Take:

That motor detail is the most interesting thing here. If Honda and Shimano are working together on something that isn’t the current EP8, that’s a bigger story than the concept bike itself.

As for the RN0, we’d expect nothing less than a well-sorted bike from a Honda and Rotwild collaboration, and the build reflects that. Concept bikes are concept bikes, though, and there’s a long distance between a show floor in Europe and a bike you can actually buy. We’ll be watching to see if this one goes anywhere.

Basecamp’s HT-10 helmet, made by Tongyang Cycling, is being recalled because it doesn’t comply with safety standards governing impact attenuation and positional stability. In plain terms, the helmet may not stay in place during a crash, and it may not absorb impacts the way a helmet is supposed to.

The helmets also fail to meet certification requirements, and they don’t carry the required labeling warning against ingestion of the included button cell battery. In a crash, or if the battery is swallowed, the results can be serious injury or death.

There are 315 units affected. They were sold on Amazon for $34 between July 2024 and July 2026. If you have one, stop using it, cut off the straps, take a photo of the destroyed helmet, and contact Tongyang Cycling with that photo to get a full refund.

Our Take:

The unit count here is small, but the failure is about as fundamental as it gets. A helmet that doesn’t stay on your head or absorb an impact isn’t doing the one job you bought it for, and the missing button cell warning makes this worse if there are kids in the house.

If you’ve got one of these sitting in the garage, cut the straps and get your refund. A $34 helmet isn’t worth the gamble, and the recall process here is about as easy as these things get.

Wet season is coming, and Showers Pass sent over a handful of pieces we’ve been putting to use.

The Syncline CC Jacket is a lightweight waterproof and windproof outer layer made from a mix of Artex fabric and recycled nylon. It has Scotchlite reflective material for visibility, two vents for breathability, and a hood cut to fit under a helmet. It comes in six sizes and two colors. Ours is leaf green, but there’s also a firecracker red/orange. It runs $199.

The Cloudburst Jacket is the hoodless option, and it’s soft, stretchy, breathable, and waterproof. The standout feature is how small it packs down. It stows inside its own back pocket. It’s made from lightweight eliteAIR fabric and recycled polyester, has large vents that double as pockets, and has a slimmer fit with 4-way stretch. Six sizes, two colors, and ours is pear, with black also available. It’s $239.

The Cross Point Waterproof Knit Gloves in Pro Wool use a 3-layer construction that’s both breathable and waterproof, with a Merino wool liner for warmth. Showers Pass puts them in the 30 to 50 degree range. There’s silicone on the palm and fingertips for grip, and conductive yarn on the index finger and thumb so you can use a touchscreen. They stretch like socks. Six sizes, three colors, and $59 per pair.

The Cross Point Waterproof Socks in Sport use the same 3-layer breathable, waterproof construction. They have full-length cushioning on the footbed, a synthetic liner for moisture wicking, an antibacterial treatment for odor control, and reinforcement at the heel and toe. Four sizes, two colors, and $52 per pair.

Our Takeaway: If you ride through fall and winter, this is the kind of gear that decides whether you actually go out or make an excuse. The Cloudburst is the one we keep reaching for, mostly because it packs into its own pocket and lives in a bag without taking up space.

The socks and gloves are the sleeper picks here. Cold, wet hands and feet end a ride faster than a cold torso does, and both of these are priced in a range where they’re easy to justify.

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Trek has added two e-bikes to its lineup, and only one of them is coming here. The Domane+ SL is available in the US and overseas. The Inbound+ has not been announced for the US market.

The Domane+ SL is the lightweight road option, starting as low as 24.5 lbs. It runs a TQ HPR40 mid-drive rated at 200W with 40 Nm of torque, and it’s built around a 360 Wh battery that Trek says is good for up to 70 miles. Riders who go through Trek’s Project One customization program can option a 580 Wh battery instead, which pushes the claimed range to 115 miles. The bike comes with 35mm tires and has clearance for up to 40mm, tops out at 28 mph, and pairs with the Trek Central app for motor tuning and other adjustments. There are three new spec levels alongside the existing SLR, with prices running from $6,500 to $12,000.

The Inbound+ takes a different approach. It uses a Bosch Hub Line motor rated at 250W and 45 Nm, with a removable battery in either 360 Wh or 600 Wh. Buyers can choose an 8 or 10-speed Shimano Essa or Cues chain drive, or go with a single-speed belt drive and internally geared hub. It carries an MIK HD cargo rack rated for 60 lbs, comes in high-step and step-thru frames, and weighs between 45 and 50 lbs depending on the build. Prices run from 1,900 to 2,350 British pounds.

Our Take:

The Domane+ SL is the one we’d expect to turn heads here. Under 25 lbs with a claimed 115 miles of range on the Project One build is a lot of bike, though the price range reflects that.

The Inbound+ is the one we’d actually like to ride, and it’s the one we can’t get. A belt-drive city bike with a Bosch hub motor and a 60 lb rack is a practical setup at a reasonable price, and it’s a shame US buyers are sitting this one out for now. We’d be happy to be proven wrong on that.

Segway is following up on one of its more popular e-bikes with the Muxi Pro. Senior brand manager Heather Henderson said the bike “represents the next evolution of one of our most popular e-bikes,” and that it takes what riders already like about the Muxi and adds features meant to make every ride more comfortable, intuitive, and confident.

The upgrade list is long. The Muxi Pro gets a 9-speed automatic shifting drivetrain, a front suspension fork with 70mm of travel, turn signals, and front and rear fenders as standard equipment. Two new colors join the lineup, Anthracite and Reef Blue. There’s also a new Passenger Kit with a seat, footpegs, and wheel guards built to work with the new drivetrain.

The tech is where things get interesting. Hill descent control and regenerative braking work together to keep descents under control while easing wear on the brake pads. Hill start assist prevents rollback when you’re pulling away on an incline, and traction control is included as well. On the security side, the bike supports Apple Find My and GPS tracking, plus AirLock and Lost Mode.

The rest of the spec sheet: a 750W motor with 80 Nm of torque, 20 x 3 inch tires, and a 418 lb payload capacity. Price is $1,999.99.

Our Take:

These look like real upgrades, not just a new paint job and a model name. Hill descent control, regen braking, hill start assist, and traction control on a $1,999.99 utility bike is a lot of hardware for the money, and automatic shifting on a bike carrying passengers makes sense. We’d love to get one in for testing to see how it all works in practice.

French brand Moustache has gone back to where it started. The updated Lundi 27 is a revamp of the company’s first e-bike, which launched back in 2012.

The new version gets a slimmer, more angular step-thru frame and drops 3.5 kg, or 7.7 lbs, compared to the previous model. Power comes from a Bosch Hub Line motor rated at 250W nominal with 400W peak and 45 Nm of torque, paired with a removable 360 Wh battery. Buyers can choose between a single-speed build with a Gates belt drive or a 9-speed Shimano CUES drivetrain. Shimano hydraulic disc brakes handle stopping, and there’s an MIK-HD cargo rack with an optional MIK front rack.

Moustache included Bosch’s ConnectModule for location tracking and security, along with the Smartphone Grip, which turns a phone into the bike’s display. A limited Launch Edition adds Chromatic Blue paint and a 10-speed drivetrain. The standard model is 2,399 Euros and the Launch Edition is 2,899 Euros.

Our Take:

Bringing back the bike that started the company is a nice move, and Moustache didn’t just recycle the name. Cutting 7.7 lbs is meaningful on a city bike, and offering a belt drive alongside the CUES build covers both the low-maintenance crowd and riders who want gears.

Like the Trek Inbound+, this is a European bike, which is becoming a familiar theme in city and commuter news lately. The Hub Line motor and the ConnectModule tracking show up on a lot of the bikes we’d like to see over here.

We got our hands on three accessories from Knog this week, covering sound, security, and light.

The Oi! Prima Bike Bell uses a wrap-around design that sits flush against the handlebar instead of sticking up off it. The bell and hammer are metal with plastic elements elsewhere, and the tone is clear and consistent. It comes in two handlebar sizes, 22.2mm and 23.8-31.8mm, in black or white/silver. It’s $32.99.

The Scout Bike Alarm & Finder is a plate with motion detection, an alarm, and Apple or Android Find My tracking built in. It mounts to the bottle cage bosses on the frame using anti-tamper screws. Once it’s armed, movement sets off an 85 db alarm and sends a notification to the owner’s iPhone if they’re in range. It recharges over USB-C, runs two to six months per charge, and is water resistant. It’s $64.99.

The Blinder X 2300 Front Bike Light Helmet Kit is the serious one. It’s a 12-LED headlight putting out 2,300 lumens with a helmet mount and a remote, so you can run it from a button on your helmet. There are six modes with flashing and steady options, and the external 10,000 mAh battery recharges over USB-C for up to 75 hours of run time. LEDs on the battery show the charge level. It’s $289.99.

Our Takeaway: The Blinder X 2300 feels solid, heavy, and well made in hand, which is what you want at that price. The Scout is the one we’d point most riders toward, though. Find My tracking and an 85 db alarm for $64.99, mounted to the bottle cage bosses with anti-tamper hardware, is cheap insurance on a bike worth a couple thousand dollars.

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Our first episode went up on October 20th, 2024. A hundred episodes later, the show has been watched roughly 505,300 times, and that’s just this series.

Griffin and John got the show off the ground, and give or take a few sick days and vacations, Griffin was part of 76 episodes. John ran 16 of them on his own. Ryan joined the desk in Episode 93.

We’re doing a few things differently to mark the occasion. There are bloopers, Trivia gets a twist, and we’re sending t-shirts to five people who comment on this episode. We’ll reply to let you know if you’re one of them, and from there you just need to fill out the form.

Our Take:

Nearly two years of weekly episodes is a milestone we didn’t want to let slide by without saying thanks. The show exists because people keep showing up in the comments with questions, corrections, and stories about their own bikes. If you’ve been watching since the early days, or you found us last month, sharing an episode is the single biggest thing you can do to help us keep growing.

Mike Sinyard is stepping back into the CEO seat at Specialized on November 1st, taking over from Armin Landgraf, who is stepping down.

Sinyard founded Specialized and ran it as CEO for 48 years before handing off the job in 2022. Scott Maguire, a former Dyson executive, held the role for about two years before passing it to Landgraf. Since stepping down, Sinyard has carried the titles of Founder, Chairman, and Chief Rider Advocate.

On the change, Sinyard said the same focus on riders and retailers is driving him, and that he still thinks of Specialized as “a big bike shop at heart.”

Our Take:

Three CEOs in four years is a lot of turnover for a company this size, and the founder coming back is usually a sign that a brand wants to reset around what it started as. Sinyard is 72 and going strong. We wish him well in the return.

Bosch has released a summary of anonymized data pulled from the past three years of its Flow app. The app directly measured 52 million miles from the odometers of connected bikes belonging to riders who opted into tracking. From there, Bosch conservatively extrapolated the figure to an estimated 62 million miles across all of its smart-system-equipped e-bikes in the US.

For scale, Bosch points out that 62 million miles is nearly 2,500 laps around the equator, or about two-thirds of the distance from the earth to the sun.

The company also nods to recent analysis from PeopleForBikes showing riders shifting away from using bikes purely for recreation and toward daily transportation. Jocelyn Vande Velde, NA Marketing Director for Bosch eBike Systems, described the numbers as real miles from real people on ordinary days, split between eMTB riders squeezing in one more climb and the commutes, errands, and school runs that used to happen in a car.

One caveat on the total. The data only goes back to the Flow app’s release in 2023, and riders in the US have been on Bosch-equipped e-bikes since 2014. The actual mileage is almost certainly much higher.

Our Take:

Bosch works with more than 100 e-bike brands, and we’ve tested models from plenty of them, including Tern, Trek, Canyon, Scott, and Salsa. The motors are consistently good, with controlled, precise, natural-feeling power delivery, and the Flow app is one of the most useful and genuinely high-tech apps we’ve spent time with.

The competition is stiffer than it used to be. Avinox is putting up serious numbers, and even Bafang is closing the gap on features. But for riders who appreciate the way Bosch does things, there’s a good reason its systems show up on so many bikes.

Mondraker is recalling the OnOff S9 carbon handlebar, which comes specced on a number of the brand’s mountain bikes. The handlebars can break during use, and the CPSC notice warns of falls that could cause serious injury or death.

There have been five reported incidents of breakage so far, with two of those resulting in injuries. Fortunately, the injuries reported have been minor.

The recall covers 16 Mondraker models spanning the 2025 through 2027 model years, including Crafty Carbon, Foxy Carbon, and Zendit bikes. Roughly 177 of these bikes were sold in the US and another 52 in Canada, through stores nationwide between December 2024 and June 2026.

There’s a link in the video description to the CPSC recall page with the full list of affected models and years, plus a serial number verification tool to check your own bike. If yours is affected, stop riding it and contact a Mondraker dealer to arrange a free replacement.

Our Take:

It’s a bummer to see that some riders have already been hurt. The numbers here are small, which means there’s a real chance the remaining owners get their handlebars swapped before anything else happens. If you’re on one of these bikes, go check your serial number now rather than next weekend.

The Povec C1 is a pair of sunglasses with an electrochromatic tint that you adjust on the fly. Instead of swapping lenses when the light changes, you swipe along the right side of the frame and the tint shifts in about a second.

The rest of the spec sheet is built for riding. There’s UV 400 protection, an IP65 rating for water and dust resistance, and impact-rated construction for sport use. Battery life runs up to 28 days based on four hours of use per day, and three different bridge pads come in the box to dial in the fit.

What we like most is that they don’t announce themselves. They look like a normal pair of sunglasses. The tint change is also noticeably faster than traditional photochromic lenses, and the swipe control is responsive enough that you’ll actually use it mid-ride. For riding in southern Utah, where you can go from full sun to deep shade in a canyon and back again, that’s a useful thing to have. They run $249.

Image Source: Povec Optics

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Illinois has signed a new law that requires e-bikes and eMotos capable of exceeding 28 mph to be registered, and it defines those devices as the legal equivalent of motorcycles. Riders will need to carry registration, and the vehicles themselves will have to comply with federal road safety standards.

Secretary of State Alex Giannoulias said the stakes are “simply too high to leave them unregulated” as high-powered devices get faster and more common on streets and sidewalks. He framed the law as a way to bring accountability and common-sense safety standards to Illinois roads while helping riders, parents, and communities understand how to share the road safely.

We first covered this bill back in episode 80, when it had just cleared the Senate and was headed to the House. Illinois has adopted the three-class system, and Class 1, 2, and 3 e-bikes remain legal without registration or special documentation. The law doesn’t outlaw eMotos, either. They can still be ridden on the street with a license, registration, and insurance. Everything takes effect on January 1st, 2027.

Our Take:

We’re glad to see that Class 1, 2, and 3 e-bikes are left alone here. Drawing a clear line between e-bikes and eMotos is the right instinct, and giving eMoto riders a legal path to use their vehicles beats banning them outright.

That path may have some holes in it, though. Micah at Electrek pointed out that many eMotos were never designed as full road vehicles. They don’t meet federal safety standards and they don’t have VIN numbers. A rider who wants to do the right thing and register their eMoto could find there’s no practical way to get it done. We’ll see which direction Illinois goes from here, but for now, legal e-bikes are unaffected, which is more than we can say for New Jersey’s new laws.

Rad Power Bikes’ parent company has started raising money in an unusual way. Life EV acquired Rad for over $13 million, with the sale finalized on March 5, 2026, then picked up QuietKat this past June. It has also purchased a 100,000 square foot facility in Tennessee to handle assembly and distribution for Rad.

Now operating as Rad Life Mobility, the company says it’s building a multi-brand e-bike platform by combining Rad Power, QuietKat, and Signal 1, with sales running through direct-to-consumer channels, retail stores, and dealers.

The funding method is the interesting part. According to Bicycle Retailer, a regulation crowdfund is an SEC rule that lets private companies raise money from the general public, sitting somewhere between a traditional private placement and a full IPO. Both accredited and non-accredited investors can participate.

Our Take:

This is a unique approach to funding, and not one we see often in this industry. Rad Life is asking the riding public to help bankroll the next chapter of a brand that plenty of those riders already own bikes from. Whether that’s a sign of confidence in the community or a sign of how hard traditional capital has been to come by, we can’t say yet. We’ll be watching to see what the company does next.

Trek has introduced the 2027 Allant+ FS, a full-suspension, SUV-style e-bike built for the European market. That last part stings a bit for those of us on this side of the Atlantic.

Two builds are available. The R11 Auto gets autoshifting, an 11-speed Cues drivetrain, and a Fox 36 AWL fork with 140mm of travel for 5,250 British pounds. The R10 drops the autoshifting and runs a 10-speed Cues drivetrain and a SunTour XCR 36 fork, also with 140mm of travel, for 4,500 British pounds.

Both builds share Bosch’s Performance Line CX mid-drive with 120 Nm of torque, a 250W nominal rating, and 750W of peak power. Both also carry 800 Wh batteries, Magura Louise Elite four-piston brakes, an MIK rack, several mounting points for bags, locks, and racks, and compatibility with Bosch’s Smart System app.

Our Take:

This feels like Trek’s answer to the Specialized Turbo Vado 3X, and it’s a strong one on paper. We reviewed an older version of the Allant back in 2024 and loved it, particularly its handling and overall ride quality. So, Trek, if you’re reading this: please give us a North American version.

Back in May, Eurobike announced that its 2027 show would run later than usual, from September 1st through 3rd, along with a shift to a biannual schedule and a heavier focus on business-to-business connections.

That plan has changed. Citing extensive feedback from the international bicycle and ecomobility sectors, the show has moved back to an early summer slot. Eurobike 2027 will now run June 30th through July 2nd at the Messe Frankfurt exhibition grounds in Germany.

The move may have something to do with a new competing show, Towards Tomorrow, which was announced in June and will be held in Cologne.

Our Take:

A September show would have put Eurobike well outside the window brands are used to planning around, so the reversal makes sense. The competition angle is hard to ignore, too. Whether Eurobike sticks with this schedule, or makes further changes to its location and frequency, remains to be seen.

The Drift Minna is a handcrafted, waterproof mountain biking sneaker, built along the same lines as the Arc model we highlighted back in Episode 91. It’s designed to clip into SPD-compatible pedals, so it works as a riding shoe without looking like one.

The upper is full-grain leather with a waterproof lining, and there’s a composite shank inside for efficient power transfer to the pedals. The toe box is reinforced for structure and foot protection, and a lace cover with a snap keeps the laces clean and out of the way of anything that might snag them. A full rubber outsole handles the walking-around portion of the ride.

They also just look good, which counts for something when you’re wearing them off the bike. At $189, they’re reasonably priced for what you’re getting.

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Bafang plans to reveal two new mid-drive motors at this year’s International Bike Festival in Misano, Italy, which runs from September 4–6. Ahead of that, the company issued a press release with the details. The M510RS is built for performance mountain bikes and tuned for precise control, with 110 Nm of torque and 1,100W of peak power on 36V systems or 1,300W on 48V systems. The M560RS targets extreme mountain bikes and the steepest terrain, offering 120 Nm of torque and 1,400W peak on 36V or 1,700W peak on 48V.

Both motors also feature Boost-to-Limit, a short-term maximum output mode with one-touch activation that provides up to 800% support. With it engaged, the M510RS climbs to 120–130 Nm and the M560RS reaches 140–150 Nm. The two share a Sport+ mode with adaptive assistance up to 500%, an integrated 6-axis IMU for real-time terrain and 3D motion sensing, Hill Hold, and Walk Assist 2.0. Both use the same mounting interface as the existing M510 and M560 mid-drives.

Bafang says it spent over 4,000 hours fine tuning these motors on race tracks, and claims a 50% faster response speed and 33% more sensitivity compared to its older mid-drives. The two were first shown as concept motors at Eurobike in 2025, with production models planned for Q4 of this year.

Our Take:

On paper, both of these motors compete with the power levels of Avinox’s M2S mid-drive, and in some cases exceed them. The M2S has been controversial, but it has also been extremely popular, and that popularity has clearly gotten the attention of other motor manufacturers. Riders want this kind of power, so it’s no surprise to see companies building products to meet that demand. We haven’t tested the latest Avinox motor yet, but we’re hoping to get our hands on the M2S along with bikes running both of these new Bafang models.

Comodule is a Dutch company specializing in Internet of Things technology that’s currently being implemented in some e-bikes. We reported last October that Comodule was partnering with Bafang to include electronic motor locks, motion detection and alarm systems, and over-the-air update capabilities.

An Amsterdam-based company called Christiania Bikes has also partnered with Comodule to add IoT connectivity and security features to its e-bikes. The bike company’s app lets riders lock their bikes, track location, and receive notifications if the bike is moved.

Comodule reports that only around 35% of Christiania’s bikes have this technology, and many owners have yet to pair their bikes with the app. Of the group that has, 90% either prevented a theft after getting a notification or recovered the bike after it was stolen.

Our Take:

This is one case study, but it lines up with what we’ve seen. Roughly half of the e-bikes we test now have some level of location tracking built in. Aventon’s bikes are probably the most robustly equipped at the moment, with the brand’s smart ACU module, electronic locks, and GPS tracking over 4G networks. Velotric is a step down, with both Apple and Android Find My compatibility plus NFC security cards. Brands like Ride1Up that offer Apple Find My are the next rung, and the lowest level is a security passcode for the pedal assist system. None of this replaces a good lock, and a lock is still better than nothing. The best setup is a lock used in combination with any of the above. We’re looking forward to testing Bafang and Comodule’s systems, and we’d encourage more brands to build similar technology into their bikes.

Trek has launched the District+, a step-thru city bike available in Europe across seven spec tiers. Every version gets a Bosch mid-drive and an MIK-compatible cargo rack, with buyers choosing between the Active Line Plus motor at 60 Nm of torque and the Performance Line motor at 75 Nm. Battery options include 360 Wh, 540 Wh, and 600 Wh packs.

Drivetrain choices cover a Shimano CUES 9- or 10-speed chain drive along with 5- or 7-speed Shimano Nexus gear hubs in either belt or chain configurations. All models feature an adjustable stem, a 63mm Suntour suspension fork, Shimano MT200 hydraulic disc brakes, and a removable, lockable battery.

The lineup comes in four frame sizes and three color options, with integrated lights and fenders across the board. The Bosch systems bring motor tuning, navigation, and other connected features. Pricing ranges from 2,300 pounds to 3,000 pounds.

Our Take:

These bikes are encouraging on two fronts: adaptability and affordability. Trek is clearly trying to appeal to consumers by competing more directly with direct-to-consumer companies, and that’s a good thing for buyers. The District+ also fills a real void. Trek’s urban lineup has been somewhat lacking since the company discontinued the Allant+ line, so it’s good to see the category getting attention again. We just hope to see these bikes here in the US.

Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer is hosting an e-bike and e-moto buyback event on Sunday, September 13th at Angel Stadium. Residents who surrender bikes will receive gift cards from stores including Target, Walmart, and Dick’s Sporting Goods, with amounts varying by vehicle type. Pocket bikes and homemade miniature bikes get $200, Class 1 e-bikes get $300, Class 2 gets $400, Class 3 gets $600, and e-motorcycles get $1,000. The first 75 people to turn in a bike also receive tickets to a Los Angeles Angels game, and there will be giveaways and e-bike safety information available to the public.

Residents can turn in bikes anonymously, the bikes can be in any condition, and no questions will be asked. According to a press release, the gift cards are funded through asset forfeiture funds, meaning money seized by law enforcement from criminal enterprises. The stated goal is reducing injuries and deaths among kids in Orange County, as incidents have risen by 430% over the last four years in Southern California.

The buyback is one of several approaches the DA’s Office is taking. It established an e-bike and e-moto task force called RIDE SAFELY, which has filed child endangerment charges against four parents who allowed their kids to ride illegal e-motos. It also filed involuntary manslaughter charges against another parent whose son hit and killed an 81-year-old Vietnam veteran while riding an e-moto. Spitzer has sent formal warnings to over 80 businesses about the legal requirements for selling e-bikes and electric motorcycles, and those businesses now face periodic inspections. Citing the California Statewide Integrated Traffic Record System, the DA’s press release notes that children between the ages of 11 and 14 account for 61.7% of e-motorcycle crashes, despite the fact that children under 16 are legally prohibited from riding them.

Our Take:

We understand what the DA’s Office is trying to do here, and the crash numbers are hard to argue with. Our concern is the scope. We’d like to see the focus stay on illegal vehicles rather than legal e-bikes that follow the 3-Class system, since those two categories aren’t creating the same problems. If you own a legal e-bike you no longer want, there might be some benefit in turning it in for a gift card. We’d just suggest selling it on Facebook Marketplace or a similar platform instead, since you’ll almost certainly come out ahead.

The Po Campo Vernon MIK Bike Trunk Bag is an MIK-compatible bag that locks into place on an MIK cargo rack. It’s sized for a change of clothes on a day trip, a lunch on the way to work, or a few groceries on the way home.

The bag is made from waterproof materials, with the liner made from recycled plastic bottles. It holds 15.7L and has 10 pockets total, some with zipper closures and others with elastic. With an optional shoulder strap, it converts into a wearable cross-body bag. There are two patterns available: we have the Tropical Nights version, but a plain Black Ripstop option is also offered.

The MIK version runs $160. If your rack isn’t MIK compatible, Po Campo also sells a universal version for $99.

Image Source: Po Campo

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Back in March, New Jersey passed a law requiring every e-bike rider in the state to hold a license and every e-bike to be registered. Class 2 and Class 3 e-bikes also have to be insured. The law took effect on July 19th, and according to NJ.com, the shop owners it interviewed are reporting sales declines between 20 and 90%.

Mike Grotz, who owns Cyclesport in Park Ridge, put it plainly: “It has had a chilling effect on the legitimate e-bike industry. We sold over 50 Class 1 e-bikes last year, this year, a total of 4 e-bikes.” Scott Chambers of Zippy’s Bike in Wildwood said his e-bike sales are off 90% year to date and that rentals have fallen just as far. “Perception is reality, and everyone thinks they are banned in NJ,” he said. “Our state has failed every bike shop in NJ. We were a struggling industry before this. Now they are breaking us. Many of us won’t make it till Christmas.”

The problems go beyond slow foot traffic. Shops are sitting on inventory they can’t sell or return, and some customers have brought e-bikes back after learning what the law requires of them. Jason Fenton, the owner of Halter’s Cycles in Montgomery, reported a 20% drop and explained that when his staff walks customers through the registration and insurance rules, most of them either refuse to comply or decide against buying an e-bike at all.

Shannon Connor, a partner at Jesse’s Rides in Shrewsbury, pointed out that the law hits riders with medical issues especially hard, since many of them buy throttle-equipped e-bikes to get around and may not be able to obtain a license in the first place. Jesse’s Rides shut down its rental business entirely because the registration process for rental bikes proved too difficult, laid off two employees, and downsized to cut overhead. Sales there are down 44% during the stretch of the year that matters most. “We have 90 days to make our money,” Connor said. “They could have fixed this before July 1 and didn’t. They’ve put bike shops out of business.”

Sandy Chapman, co-founder of the New Jersey E-Bike Shop Coalition, has heard from other shops seeing sales fall 30 to 60%, and estimates that roughly a dozen bike shops have already closed. Owners have been contacting state legislators about amending or replacing the law, but no bills with alternative proposals are currently in front of the legislature. The consensus among shop owners is that Class 1 and Class 2 e-bikes should be exempt, and that the state would get better results by funding bicycle safety and skills training at the community level.

Our Take: We support changing or replacing this law, and we’d go a step further. These requirements make sense for mobility devices capable of exceeding 28 mph. They do not make sense for a Class 1 pedal-assist bike that tops out at 20. Other states are already writing definitions that separate high-speed electric devices from e-bikes, and that’s the approach New Jersey should be taking. Right now the state has managed to scare off the customers who were buying legal, compliant bikes from legitimate shops, while the riders causing the problems keep doing what they were doing.

After months of delays, ALSO has started shipping the Launch Edition of its TM-B e-bike to customers who pre-ordered it. The company has also opened pre-orders on the Performance and Standard models, both of which can be configured on ALSO’s website with different handlebar, tire, and seat options.

Alongside the shipping news, ALSO closed a Series D round worth $150 million. The National Association of Tax Professionals describes this kind of round as late-stage funding that follows earlier rounds, often reaching into the hundreds of millions, raised at a point when a company has proven its business model, built a customer base, and is generating real revenue. Prysm Capital led the round, with participation from Eclipse, Greenoaks, and MVP Ventures.

The money is going toward autonomous vehicles for urban environments. ALSO plans to build multiple platforms capable of carrying both goods and passengers, and it’s working with Amazon and DoorDash on autonomous delivery vehicles. Those vehicles will build on the technology already in the TM-B and the company’s commercial quad, the TM-Q.

Chris Yu, ALSO’s President and co-founder, said, “Whether a vehicle is driven or autonomous, the need to solve for congestion and cost per trip doesn’t change. This is exactly why we started ALSO — to deliver well designed, intelligent small vehicles better suited for today’s urban and suburban centers.” Prysm co-founder and managing partner Jay Park framed the investment as an extension of his firm’s early bet on Rivian, saying ALSO is applying the same vertically integrated approach to smaller vehicles for commercial operators and consumers.

Our Take: We rode the TM-B briefly at Sea Otter this year and came away impressed, so it’s good to see bikes finally reaching customers. We’re hoping to get one into our warehouse and through our standardized performance tests before long. The funding is a different story, but it makes sense. Autonomous vehicles are still finding their footing, and it looks like that’s the direction things are heading. ALSO has a strong foundation with the TM-B, and building outward from that platform is a reasonable next step.

Accell Group, the Netherlands-based company behind Raleigh, Lapierre, Haibike, and other brands, has been declared bankrupt by a court in Amsterdam. The group also used to own titanium brand Van Nicholas and Nishiki, both of which it sold earlier this year to an Italian and a Turkish company, respectively.

The trouble started after a private equity group bought Accell in 2022. Sales declined once the pandemic boom faded, leaving the company with a mountain of unsold inventory, and it also had to issue a recall on Babboe cargo bikes. Accell reported a loss of nearly 400 million euros last year. The private equity group handed control to Accell’s creditors in February, the company stopped paying suppliers, and the bankruptcy declaration followed this month. A factory in the Netherlands closed last year, and NLtimes reports that the group’s Hungarian factory has now shut down as well.

Raleigh and Lapierre are both trying to get out from under it. Raleigh has filed a notice of intention to appoint administrators, which buys it a short window of legal protection to restructure or find a buyer. Lapierre filed for judicial reorganization through a French commercial court while it looks for an investor. A takeover by DuTech Group fell apart in early summer.

There may be a path forward. Quanta Capital, an Irish investment firm, has expressed interest in buying Accell. Quanta’s CEO, Mel Sutcliffe, has deep roots in the industry. He raced for the Irish national cycling team in the 80s and 90s, founded the Irish retailer Eurocycles, and bought and grew Raleigh Ireland before selling it to Accell in 2016.

Our Take: Whether Quanta follows through is anyone’s guess, but we’re rooting for it. Watching bike brands go dark never gets easier, and Accell owns names that have been around a lot longer than most of us. More than the badges, there are over 2,000 employees attached to this company. We’d like to see a buyer who understands the industry keep them working.

Cube’s new lineup includes the Editor Hybrid Pro 360 FE, Editor Hybrid One 360 FE, Supreme Hybrid C:62 Deluxe SLX, and Supreme Hybrid C:62 Deluxe SLT. The names are a mouthful, but the bikes are worth a look.

The two Editor models are lightweight urban e-bikes running Bosch’s new Hub Line rear-hub motor with 45 Nm of torque and a 360 Wh Powertube battery. Previous versions of these bikes used mid-drives only, so the hub motor brings the price down. The “FE” stands for fully equipped, meaning fenders, pannier hangers, and integrated lights. The Hybrid Pro 360 FE uses a single-speed drivetrain with a Gates Carbon belt and weighs 19.2 kg, or 42 lbs. The Hybrid One 360 FE runs an 8-speed Shimano Essa drivetrain and weighs 20 kg, or 44 lbs. Both come in high-step and mid-step (trapeze) frame styles.

The Supreme Hybrid C:62 Deluxe models step up to a Bosch Performance Line CX mid-drive with 100 Nm of torque and a 600 Wh battery. The SLX has a step-thru carbon frame, a Gates belt drive paired with an Enviolo CVT, a 50mm SR Suntour fork, a rocker-style suspension seatpost, integrated lights, fenders, a wheel lock, and a cargo rack. The SLT adds Enviolo’s AutomatiQ system and Bosch anti-lock brakes.

Cube also redesigned the frames on its Fold Hybrid and Compact Hybrid e-bikes. The Fold Hybrid gets a new folding mechanism and an integrated carry handle, and both models include rear racks with the option to add front racks. Each is available in a Deluxe trim with a Gates belt drive.

Our Take: Cube is a German company, so availability in the US is limited, though there are dealers here for anyone determined enough to track one down. Whether these specific models make it over is a coin flip. What we really want is Bosch’s new rear hub motor. A 45 Nm hub unit in a sub-45 lb urban bike opens up a price point that Bosch hasn’t really played in before, and we’d love to see what US brands do with it.

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